CHICAGO, Ill. – The 22nd-ranked Elmhurst men's basketball team outscored North Park 43-23 in the second half en route to a 75-50 road victory.
 
Elmhurst (14-3, 4-2 CCIW) and North Park (9-8, 0-6 CCIW) slugged it out for much of the opening half as the lead changed hands six times and was tied on five occasions. Elmhurst built an early six-point cushion, only to see the Vikings rattle off eight straight points to pull in front at 17-15. The two teams exchanged buckets and leads five times.  Elmhurst took the lead for good on a Kyle Wuest jumper with 2:19 remaining in the half. The Bluejays closed the half on a 6-0 run to build a 32-27 lead at the half.
 

Elmhurst exploded over the final 12 minutes of the second half, outscoring North Park 30-11 for the duration of the contest to pull away for the 25-point victory.  
 
The Bluejays dominated the game inside, outscoring North Park 46-25 in the paint and outrebounding the Vikings 59-22. Elmhurst had two less offensive rebounds (20) then North Park had in total rebounds (22). The Bluejays turned the 20 offensive rebounds into 26 second-chance points.
 
Elmhurst shot an even 50.0 percent (27-of-54) from the floor, despite hitting just 1-of-10 from beyond the arc. Elmhurst went to the foul line 26 times and hit 20 to finish the game shooting 76.9 percent.
 
Wuest led a balanced attack for the Bluejays, totaling 14 points and 12 rebounds in the win. Will Nixon added 14 points and nine rebounds while Erik Crittenden came off the bench to record a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds. Brandon Schwebke added nine points and five rebounds while Pa Coleman and Bryant Ackerman scored six points apiece.
 
North Park struggled with its shooting, hitting just 25.8 percent (16-of-62) of its shots, including just 17.2 percent (5-of-29) in the second half. The Vikings were ice cold from downtown, hitting just 3-of-26 attempts from three-point range.
 
Juwan Henry led the Vikings with 19 points and seven rebounds while Jordan Robinson scored 14.
 
Elmhurst hosts Illinois Wesleyan University on Saturday, January 24.